White House says Obama open to talks with Iranian President Rouhani

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White House says Obama open to talks with Iranian President Rouhani

(Xinhua) 09:14, September 20, 2013

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 -- The White House said Thursday that President Barack Obama is open to bilateral discussions with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, if Iran is serious about giving up its nuclear weapons program.

White House Spokesman Jay Carney said during a daily news briefing that "it's possible, but it has always been possible," to have direct conversations with Iran, if "they are serious about ridding themselves of their nuclear weapons program and honoring the international commitments that they've made."

But Carney said they "have no meetings scheduled," as both Obama and Rouhai are expected to attend UN General Assembly next week.

Before he left for New York for the UN appearance, Iranian President Rouhani said Wednesday during an interview with NBC, a major U.S. TV network, that his administration will never develop nuclear weapons and that he has full authority to make a deal with Western powers on his country's atomic program.

Carney said that the Obama administration obviously noticed a significant change in language and tone from the new Iranian government when compared to its predecessor.

But Carney also added that U.S. won't just take Iran's words for it, as "actions are more important than words."

On the same day, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry also said that Rouhani's comments are "very positive," but "everything needs to be put to the test."

（Editor：WangXin、Yao Chun）